Digital Commons Network^™

Effective International Medical Disaster Relief: A Qualitative Descriptive Study, Nicolette Broby, Jane H. Lassetter, Mary Williams, Blaine A. Winters

Faculty Publications

Purpose: The aim of this study was to assist organizations seeking to develop or improve their medical disaster relief effort by identifying fundamental elements and processes that permeate high-quality, international, medical disaster relief organizations and the teams they deploy.

Methods: A qualitative descriptive design was used. Data were gathered from interviews with key personnel at five international medical response organizations, as well as during field observations conducted at multiple sites in Jordan and Greece, including three refugee camps. Data were then reviewed by the research team and coded to identify patterns, categories, and themes.

Results: The results from this qualitative, …

Workplace Social Skills For Young Adults With Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Single-Subject Community-Based Intervention, Haley Anne Thomas

Theses and Dissertations

Since socialization deficits are the primary characteristic of autism spectrum disorder, attaining and maintaining employment in adulthood can prove to be problematic. This study evaluates the effectiveness of a nine-week program designed to teach workplace social skills to young adults with autism in a community setting. Both qualitative and quantitative methods were used to analyze outcomes. Quantitative methods consisted of live observational behavioral coding. Qualitative measures used written intake and discharge reports, obtained from the program's coordinators, to analyze their perceptions of pre-intervention goals and post-intervention outcomes and remaining barriers related to social skills. Overall outcomes suggest the program does …

Why Can't Zelda Save Herself? How The Damsel In Distress Trope Affects Video Game Players, Jared Capener Hansen

Theses and Dissertations

Research has unearthed an abundance of objectification and hypersexualization of female characters within video games. However, the recurring element of the damsel in distress trope is also harmful to the medium. This cliché of a helpless princess in need of a man to save her is a recurring element of The Legend of Zelda series. This experimental design tested the effects of a prototypical œsave the princess mission on players agreement to sexist statements on gender roles, objectification, and female dependency, and examined the factors of self-efficacy and gamer status as potential mediators. Participants played a modified version of a …

Sixth-Grade Elementary And Seventh- And Eighth-Grade Middle School Teachers' Knowledge And Beliefs About Science Literacy, Melissa P. Mendenhall

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore Grades 6-8 teachers knowledge and beliefs about science literacy and instruction that develops science literacy, in both the fundamental and derived senses. All Grade 6 elementary teachers and Grades 7-8 middle school science teachers from five school districts in the Mountain West region of the U.S. were invited to participate by responding to an online survey consisting of open response questions and critical instances. Data were analyzed using an immersion style of coding. Findings suggest a majority of teachers view literacy as reading and writing and text as something that is …

Does Family Communication Matter? Exploring Knowledge Of Breast Cancer Genetics In Cancer Families, Sarah Harmon Davis

Theses and Dissertations

Purpose: Knowledge of breast cancer genetics is critical for those at increased risk whomust make decisions about breast cancer screening options. The purpose of this study was toexplore cognitive and emotional variables that might influence knowledge of breast cancergenetics.Methods: This descriptive, exploratory study analyzed theory-based relationships amongvariables related to knowledge of breast cancer genetics in cancer families. Participants includedfirst-degree relatives of women with breast cancer who had received genetic counseling andtesting; participants themselves did not have breast cancer and had not received geneticcounseling or testing. Data were collected by telephone interview and survey. Variables analyzedinclude numeracy, health literacy, cancer-related distress, …

Does Family Communication Matter? Exploring Knowledge Of Breast Cancer Genetics In Cancer Families, Sarah Harmon Davis

Theses and Dissertations

Purpose: Knowledge of breast cancer genetics is critical for those at increased risk whomust make decisions about breast cancer screening options. The purpose of this study was toexplore cognitive and emotional variables that might influence knowledge of breast cancergenetics.Methods: This descriptive, exploratory study analyzed theory-based relationships amongvariables related to knowledge of breast cancer genetics in cancer families. Participants includedfirst-degree relatives of women with breast cancer who had received genetic counseling andtesting; participants themselves did not have breast cancer and had not received geneticcounseling or testing. Data were collected by telephone interview and survey. Variables analyzedinclude numeracy, health literacy, cancer-related distress, …

An Early Childhood Expository Comprehension Measure: A Look At Validity, Marybeth Fillerup Robertson

Theses and Dissertations

Many have argued for more informational text to be incorporated into the curriculum, even in the earliest grades. However, it has traditionally been thought that narrative text should precede informational text when introducing children to literacy. Still several studies have demonstrated that preschool children are capable of learning from these texts. Because informational texts are being introduced even in the earliest grades, preschool teachers are in need of ways to assess their students' ability to handle early forms of informational texts. The Early Expository Text Comprehension Assessment (EECA) was developed to help teachers understand the comprehension abilities of their preschool …

A Flexible Fpga-Assisted Framework For Remote Attestation Of Internet Connected Embedded Devices, Jared Russell Patten

Theses and Dissertations

Embedded devices permeate our every day lives. They exist in our vehicles, traffic lights, medical equipment, and infrastructure controls. In many cases, improper functionality of these devices can present a physical danger to their users, data or financial loss, etc. Improper functionality can be a result of software or hardware bugs, but now more than ever, is often the result of malicious compromise and tampering, or as it is known colloquially "hacking". We are beginning to witness a proliferation of cyber-crime, and as more devices are built with internet connectivity (in the so called "Internet of Things"), security should be …

Language Translation For Mental Health Materials: A Comparison Of Current Back-Translation And Skopostheorie-Based Methods, Amelia Kathleen Black

Theses and Dissertations

As mental health professionals seek to disseminate information in many languages in order to meet the needs of an increasingly diverse population, it is important to consider the methods of written translation that the field is choosing to employ. The method chosen for translation can affect the accuracy and usability of the translated text. This study begins with a survey of current literature, the results of which suggest that the most popular translation method in the mental health field is back-translation, a translation method based in the premise that translating a text back into its original English after it has …

Effects Of Divided Attention On Speech In Parkinson's Disease, Melissa Inkley

Theses and Dissertations

The effects of divided attention on speech in Parkinson's disease (PD) have been studied for a variety of tasks in recent years. Much of the previous research studied gait patterns while participants concurrently performed another task. There have been few studies regarding the effects of divided attention on speech in individuals with PD. The ability to communicate effectively relies in part on an appropriate rate of speech, vocal intensity, and fundamental frequency control. This study included 27 participants: 8 with PD, 12 neurologically healthy older (HO) adults, and 7 healthy younger (HY) adults. Each participant was given a list of …

Ethnic Identity And School Belonging Among Pacific Islander High School Students, Mari N. Oto

Theses and Dissertations

Pacific Islander high school students in the state of Utah specifically, but across the United States generally, face significant challenges such as high levels of high school dropout and low levels of academic attainment. The purpose of this study was to examine if components of an achieved ethnic identity (exploration and commitment) are positively related to high levels of school belonging among Pacific Islander high school students in Utah. I further investigated whether self-esteem was a mediating factor in any observed relationship between ethnic identity and school belonging. Participants in this study were Pacific Islander youth between the ages of …

Native Mandarin Speakers' Production Of English Fricatives As A Function Of Linguistic Task Type And Word Position: A Spectral Moment Analysis, Lindsey Mccall Wing

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to analyze the phonetic production of fricatives across differing word positions and task types. Further knowledge about the fricative production of second language learners of English would potentially improve the ability to teach correct pronunciation and improve the productivity of second language programs. All participants in this study were native speakers of Mandarin Chinese with English as their second language. A total of 12 subjects participated, all of whom had English proficiency ratings ranging from novice to advanced. The speakers were between 21-51 years of age, with each speaker having between 2 to 6 …

Well-Being And Physiological Reactivity To Stress, Sheilagh Fox

Theses and Dissertations

Because of the impact of stress on health, it is important to understand the variables that underlie cardiovascular reactivity to stress because it may lead to more focused targets of intervention for helping people to reduce or otherwise better manage their stress. The purpose of the present study was to answer the following questions: does lack of eudaimonic well-being (a combination of psychological and social well-being) predict increased cardiovascular reactivity to stress in a clinically distressed population? And does increased eudaimonic well-being protect against increased cardiovascular reactivity to stress when hedonic well-being (a combination of positive affect and life satisfaction) …

Effects Of Competition In Violent And Nonviolent Video Games On Aggressive/Prosocial Behavior, Christopher Edward Hawk

Theses and Dissertations

Previous research shows that playing violent video games leads to increases in aggressive feelings, thoughts, and behaviors. However, recent research has questioned the reliability of these findings. Two important variables associated with aggressive outcomes that have yet to be fully explored in the violent video game literature are the competitive aspects of the games and the outcomes of that competition (e.g., winning or losing). The present study was a two (gameplay: violent vs. nonviolent) by two (difficulty: easy vs. hard) by three (competition: no competition vs. competition win vs. competition lose) between-subjects factorial design, with aggressive/prosocial behavior measured as the …

The Use Of Evidence-Based Design In Hospital Renovation Projects, David S. Whitaker

Theses and Dissertations

Since the 1960s, researchers have been exploring how the design of the built environment impacts the health and well-being of occupants and users. By the 1980s, further research began to focus on healthcare facilities in particular and how design could influence patient healing and medical staff performance (Alfonsi, 2014). Evidence-Based Design (EBD) is "the process of basing decisions about the built environment on credible research to achieve the best possible outcomes" (CHD, 2016). The desired outcomes of Evidence-Based Design recommendations include improvements in the following: patient healing, patient experience and comfort, medical staff performance, and medical staff job satisfaction (CHD, …

The Emotional Effects Of Life Experience On Bilingual Speakers' Nonverbal Communications, Sarah Marie Webb

Theses and Dissertations

This research is intended to demonstrate that bilingual speakers exhibit nonverbal behavior and emotional expressions that affect their ability to communicate in their intended manner. I argue that these changes are linked to the emotional ties to experiences in those languages. The nonverbal traits that appear when bilingual speakers share personal narratives in different languages are measured through facial recognition and emotion sensory software for evidentiary support in establishing intent versus actual self-presentation. New methods of self-analysis are discussed and utilized to determine if the speakers are inherently aware of these changes or can notice them through cross linguistic self-analyses.

Patient Satisfaction, Is It Truly Indicative Of Good Healthcare Outcomes?, Matthew Nelson

Student Works

Patient satisfaction is a widely used healthcare metric. However, the connection between patient healthcare outcomes and patient satisfaction remains poorly defined. Despite wide use of patient surveys, their relationship to patient outcomes is unclear; this is especially true regarding morbidity, mortality, prescription drug abuse or addiction, healthcare utilization, and expenditures. Since patient satisfaction is used to determine part of provider reimbursement (Department of Health and Human Services, 2015), healthcare providers may seek to improve patient satisfaction instead of healthcare outcomes. The purpose of this paper is to review the relationship between healthcare outcomes and patient satisfaction. In so doing, it …

Dimensions Of Short-Term And Long-Term Self-Regulation In Adolescence: Associations With Maternal And Paternal Parenting And Parent-Child Relationship Quality, Kristin L. Moilanen, Laura M. Padilla-Walker, Debra R. Blaacker

Faculty Publications

Relatively little is known about the degree to which subcomponents of self-regulation change during early to middle adolescence. This study considered familial predictors (maternal/paternal regulatory support, antagonistic parenting, and parent-child closeness) of rank-order change in behavioral, emotional and cognitive regulation and perseverance over one year. N = 452 adolescents ages 11–16 years and their parents completed questionnaires and parent-child discussion tasks (48.7% male; 69.6% white). Results indicated minimal direct effects of parenting, though maternal and paternal parenting and parent-child closeness exerted small effects that were moderated by prior levels of cognitive regulation and perseverance. Parents may contribute to the development …

Front Matter, Vol. 77 No. 4

Western North American Naturalist

No abstract provided.

Use Of Inflow Areas In Two Colorado River Basin Reservoirs By The Endangered Razorback Sucker (Xyrauchen Texanus), Brandon Albrecht, Harrison E. Mohn, Ron Kegerries, Mark C. Mckinstry, Ron Rogers, Travis Francis, Brian Hines, James Stolberg, Dale Ryden, Darek Elverud, Benjamin Schleicher, Katherine Creighton, Brian Healy, Brandon Senger

Western North American Naturalist

During the last century, populations of the endangered Razorback Sucker (Xyrauchen texanus) have declined in the Colorado River Basin. Dramatic changes in habitat resulting from altered flow regimes and the presence of nonnative fishes were likely major factors contributing to this decline. Since 1996, studies in Lake Mead have resulted in the discovery of 4 areas where wild Razorback Suckers were spawning; all of these locations have tributary or wastewater inflows. Since the Lake Mead Razorback Sucker population has persisted near these prominent inflow areas, we hypothesize that complex inflow areas with vegetative cover and turbidity provide important …

An R Package For Open, Reproducible Analysis Of Urban Water Systems, With Application To Chicago, Laura E. Erban, Stephen B. Balogh, Daniel E. Campbell, Henry A. Walker

Open Water Journal

Urban water systems consist of natural and engineered flows of water interacting in complex ways. System complexity can be understood via mass conservative models that account for the interrelationships among all major flows and storages. We have developed a generic urban water system model in the R package CityWaterBalance. CityWaterBalance provides a reproducible workflow for studying urban water systems by facilitating automated retrievals of open data and post-processing with open source R functions. It allows the user to 1) rapidly assemble a quantitative, comprehensive assessment of flows thorough an urban area, and 2) easily change the spatial and temporal boundaries …

The East Asian Technical Services Model At The University Of California, Berkeley, Haiqing Lin, Deborah Rudolph, Peter Zhou

Journal of East Asian Libraries

No abstract provided.

Jeal No. 166 Full Issue

Journal of East Asian Libraries

No abstract provided.

Lists Of Selected Full-Text Databases By Subscription In East Asian Studies

Journal of East Asian Libraries

No abstract provided.

The Model That Works For The Ucla East Asian Library, Su Chen

Journal of East Asian Libraries

No abstract provided.

3d Printed High Density, Reversible, Chip-To-Chip Microfluidic Interconnects, Hua Gong, Adam T. Woolley, Gregory P. Nordin

Faculty Publications

Our latest developments in miniaturizing 3D printed microfluidics [Gong et al., Lab Chip, 2016, 16, 2450; Gong et al., Lab Chip, 2017, 17, 2899] offer the opportunity to fabricate highly integrated chips that measure only a few mm on a side. For such small chips, an interconnection method is needed to provide the necessary world-to-chip reagent and pneumatic connections. In this paper, we introduce simple integrated microgaskets (SIMs) and controlled-compression integrated microgaskets (CCIMs) to connect a small device chip to a larger interface chip that implements world-to-chip connections. SIMs or CCIMs are directly 3D printed as part of the device …

Latent ;Toxoplasma Gondii; Infection Moderates The Association Between The C677t Mthfr Polymorphism And Cognitive Function In U.S. Adults, Andrew Nathan Berrett

Theses and Dissertations

Sufficient blood concentrations of folate and the products from its metabolism arenecessary for several cellular functions. The C677T MTHFR polymorphism, present in over halfof the U.S. population, reduces the efficiency of folate metabolism and has been linked to theonset of multiple psychiatric disorders and cognitive decline. The intracellular parasiteToxoplasma gondii can infect the human brain and is associated with increased prevalence ofpsychiatric disorders and cognitive decline. In vitro studies have found that Toxoplasma gondiimay salvage unmetabolized folate from host cells. Since the C677T MTHFR polymorphism andinfection by Toxoplasma gondii both affect folate metabolism or availability, I used data fromthe third …

Keystroke Dynamics: Utilizing Keyprint Biometrics To Identify Users In Online Courses, Jay Richards Young

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the potential use of keystroke dynamics to create keyprints (typing fingerprints) to authenticate individuals in online assessment situations. The implications of this study are best understood in terms of the keystroke behavioral biometric. While previous studies considered the degree to which keystroke typing patterns are unique, this study was set up to determine how well keyprints are able to identify individuals when typing under various treatment conditions (copy typing, free typing, and typing with mild or moderate impediments). While authentication can be difficult when attempting to correctly identify individual users, the results of this study indicate that …

Latent Toxoplasma Gondii Infection Moderates The Association Between The C677t Mthfr Polymorphism And Cognitive Function In U.S. Adults, Andrew Nathan Berrett

Theses and Dissertations

Sufficient blood concentrations of folate and the products from its metabolism are necessary for several cellular functions. The C677T MTHFR polymorphism, present in over half of the U.S. population, reduces the efficiency of folate metabolism and has been linked to the onset of multiple psychiatric disorders and cognitive decline. The intracellular parasite Toxoplasma gondii can infect the human brain and is associated with increased prevalence of psychiatric disorders and cognitive decline. In vitro studies have found that Toxoplasma gondii may salvage unmetabolized folate from host cells. Since the C677T MTHFR polymorphism and infection by Toxoplasma gondii both affect folate metabolism …

The Effects Of Incomplete Rating Designs On Results From Many-Facets-Rasch Model Analyses, Mary R. Mcewen

Theses and Dissertations

A rating design is a pre-specified plan for collecting ratings. The best design for a rater-mediated assessment both psychometrically and from the perspective of fairness is a fully-crossed design in which all objects are rated by all raters. An incomplete rating design is one in which all objects are not rated by all raters, instead each object is rated by an assigned subset of raters usually to reduce the time and/or cost of the assessment. Human raters have varying propensities to rate severely or leniently. One method of compensating for rater severity is the many-facets Rasch model (MFRM). However, unless …